A Dark Twilight
by Menala Blackthorn
Summary: A pair of twin Lost Witches find themselves living in a 'quiet' little town in the middle of nowhere. Both finding their own ways in their new home, will they end up as enemies? Bad summary. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer! I do not own Night World, L.J. Smith does. The town and the characters are mine though (Although I do use names; Redfern, Rasmussen, Drache, etc.)**

"I don't want them! Take them away!"

The sound of crying fills the house. Plates crash and a man's calming voice battles with the manic raging. The attic bedroom door is locked and the two girls frantically throw things into bags. Clothes, brushes, under garments. Normal things that anyone who was going on a trip would normally take.

Then odder things join the disarray. Colorful rocks. Dried plants. Old torn books.

"I hope we never come back here." One angry young declares as she yanks the zippers of her bags closed.

The calmer of the two flinches "How did it get to this?" she whispered sadly.

Both freeze. Suddenly the house is silent. Then an explosion of gunfire fills the air, causing both to scream. They cling to each other as footsteps walk up the steps to their room. Soft knocking reaches them. Then, to their relief, a gentle voice calls through the door.

"Girls? It's ok now."  
The bolder one crosses to the door and opens it. The man with the white hair and gentle blue eyes smiled sadly.

"Is...is he dead?" the calmer one asked quietly.

The man shook his head "No, he was going to shoot me. I knocked him out before he could. But it's best if we leave before he wakes up."

The calmer one winced and picked up her bags "If he wanted to get rid of us, why was he going to shoot you?"

She is met with silence. She looks over her shoulder at the man and sees her sister already waiting with her bags.

When the man answers, his voice is sad and quiet "That's what people who have gone insane are like."


	2. Chapter 2: A New Home

**I don't own Night World, L.J. Smith does.**

The car stopped at the gate. On a friendly yet faded sign read 'Welcome to Glendwyr Falls!'. Cressida Hale shifted and checked the slip of paper in her hands. It was rumpled from being smashed into a ball and thrown out, recovered and smoothed out, then being folded and refolded, but that was certainly the name of the town they were heading for.

The driver got out and spoke to the men guarding the road. They moved with a strange boneless grace and rarely blinked. The driver showed them papers and pictures of the two of them.

"They look like snakes." came the sultry voice next to her. Cressida glanced to the side at her sister Kerensa, so different yet her twin nonetheless.  
"Who? The guards?" Cressida asked, looking back to them. They did indeed resemble snakes slightly.

"Maybe they're shifters. Snakeshifters." Kerensa said, one corner of her mouth tilting up in a bemused smirk. "I always thought the first shifters we saw would be something, oh I don't know, stereotypical."

"Like wolves?" Cressida guessed "Well, remember what that man said when he was explaining all this? Werewolves aren't really counted as shapeshifters."  
"It didn't have to be wolves. It could have been a lion, or a hawk, or something more formidable. Snakes...just not as threatening."

Cressida raised an eyebrow "Venom."

Kerensa blinked and crossed her arms "Oh, right." her smirk disappeared. She hated being corrected.

Cressida fought back the sigh that threatened to escape and looked at their driver when he returned. He looked between them "Ok, Mr. Vivaris should have given you each an I.D. card to use. Let me see them."

Cressida reached into her jacket pocket and found the little plastic lamenated card about the size of a license. It had her age, picture, blood type and a small picture of a black dahlia in the corner.

Cressida glanced to the side and saw Kerensa searching through her bag with a small frown "You didn't lose it did you?"

"No of course not." Kerensa snapped "It's just...not in the pocket I thought it was in."

"So, lost?" Cressida said with a small teasing smile. Kerensa was certainly the more disorganized of the two.

Kerensa stuck her tongue out and finally found it, jammed between two pairs of pants. The two of them handed their cards to the impatient driver, who walked back to the snake guards.

After what seemed like ages, the driver returned to his seat in the car and gave them back their cards. The gate rose and he pulled the car forward.

Kerensa sat back "So where are we going?"

"Grove street. The boarding house is there. You two will start school on Monday next week."

Cressida nodded "Do you know who runs the boarding house?"

The driver shook his head "I just know her name is miss Nance, she is a made vampire from 1912. She was a Titanic survivor before she was turned I believe."

Kerensa sat up straighter, Cressida remembered she had an interest in the Titanic and had read multiple books. At least she would have someone to talk to at the house.

After a short expanse of trees (the driver mentioned there was a forest about a mile away from the town) the first little buildings came into view. Cressida watched them go by curiously, it certainly seemed like a quiet little town. Not many people were out, but that could be because it was the middle of Wednsday. Still, the few she saw seemed happy.

The car slowed to a stop at the curb "Here we are."

Cressida looked up at her new home, and gave a small gasp of surprise.

It looked like it belonged in a horror story.

It used to be white, but had dulled into a faded light brown. The black window shutters framing every window clattered in the crisp winter wind. The wraparound porch was bare except for a small table next to the door. The scraggly trees running up and down the sides clung to it as if to pull it into the ground.

Cressida stared at the house for so long Kerensa had to flick her in the nose to get her attention.

"Come on, we're getting out." she said impatiently as she climbed out of the car with her duffel bag.

Cressida gave the house one last uneasy look before scrambling out with her bags. The driver set the rest on the sidewalk and got back into the car.

"Good luck girls." he said before driving off.

'With what?' Cressida thought to herself with a small sigh.

Together the two of them walked up the crached concrete walkway to the front porch. The wooden steps had peeling white paint and creaked when they stepped on them. They exchanged a glance before Kerensa reached up and knocked on the door.

They both waited for endless seconds. Just as Cressida reached forward to knock again, the door crashed open, making her jump and Kerensa snicker.

The woman who peered down at through silver-rimmed eyeglasses had the look of a lawyer mixed with a accountant. Brisk, business like, and no nonsense or room for error.

'And young...' Cressida thought in surprise. Yes, the crisp grey suit and platinum blonde hair pulled back into a severe bun made her seem older, but the face that looked at them was unwrinkled, unlined and no older than 18.

"Cressida and Kerensa Hale?" her voice was the same as the rest of her, shockingly young but still undeniably old.

"Yeah" Kerensa said with a nod.

The woman/girl turned her blue gaze on Kerensa "Yes" she corrected before turning and walking into the house. Cressida and Kerensa exchanged a glance before walking in after her.

"My name is Angelica Nance, but you and the other girls living here call me Ms. Nance. There are four other girls, all of whom are at school, so you will have time to settle and unpack before meeting them." Ms. Nance informed them.

"Do we share rooms?" Kerensa inquired.

"Yes, three bedrooms, two girls to a room. Unfortunately you two won't be able to share a room since the only two free beds are in seperate rooms."

"That's fine." Cressida said calmly.

Ms. Nance nodded and moved on down the hall. Cressida took this chance to survey the inside of the house. While the outside was creepy and decrepit, the inside was warm and cozy. Clean polished mahogony floors glistened beneath their feet. In the living room off to the side she saw a living room with red plush carpet and soft couches. A fireplace sat against the far wall. The granfather clock at the end of the hall chimed.

"Are you both hungry? It was a long drive."

Both girls quickly nodded and were led into a well stocked kitchen with black and white tiled floor. The two of them stood awkwardly, unsure if they could just start digging through.

Ms. Nance raised a thin eyebrow "Well go on, make yourselves something and I'll explain the rest of the house rules while you eat."

Kerensa nodded, now having no problems pawing through the cabinets. She returned to the counter with bread and various sandwich ingredients. Cressida quickly hurried over to make her own. Behind them Ms. Nance sat regally at the large rectangular table.

"Now, while we're on the subect of food, during school days only breakfast and dinner are provided. Breakfast is served at 7:00 a.m. and dinner is served at 5:30 p.m., when lunch is provided it is at 12:30. If you miss a meal you will either have to fend for yourselves or you are free to leftovers or anything else you can make for yourselves. However if you make a habit of skipping prepared meals and eating up everything, you will have to get a job to help pay for groceries."

Cressida listened closely as she ate her sandwich and noticed Kerensa seemed to have checked out. She was looking out the window at what looked like would be a lush garden in spring. She would have to explain it to her later.

Ms. Nance didn't comment on Kerensa's lack of attention and just continued "You two are witches, if my information is correct. Living here is myself, the cleaning help Josephine, a cat shapeshifter, and Kora, another witch. Circle Twilight." she glanced at Cressida when she said this and moved on "As well as the other four girls. Faline Gunther is 16 and a doe shapeshifter, as well as Cressida's roomate. Sabine DeLenfet is 17 and a Circle Midnight witch. Cordelia Munroe is a made vampire who was turned when she was 14. And Melisende Rasmussen is a lamia vampire who is 17 also. She will be Kerensa's roomate."

Kerensa nodded, having actually returned her attention to Ms. Nance. Cressida was anxious to meet everyone now. She tried to imagine what they were like from their names. They all sounded pretty. She hoped they were nice. Every since she was little Cressida had been the shy one.

"While our cleaning staff takes care of the more difficult tasks, we do have chores for you girls. For starters you can both wash your dishes."

Cressida nodded and stood with her plate. She took Kerensa's when her sister made no move to follow her. Then she walked to the sink and turned on the water.

Ms. Nance glanced between the two of them "Now, on school nights there is an eight o' clock curfew. Friends and specifically boys are not permitted after six without permission from me. And there will be no boys in a bedroom with a closed door."

Cressida turned when she was done and found Ms. Nance fixing them both with a hard stare.

"And no humans are permitted in this house. This is the second most important rule. Now, get your bags and I'll show you your rooms.

Kerensa had an interested look as she picked up her bags. Cressida felt a twinge of anxiety at that look and quickly followed the two to the carpeted staircase.

"So," Kerensa prompted "what's the most important rule?"

Ms. Nance paused and glanced at Kerensa's expectant face "Absolutely none of you are allowed in the basement." Ms. Nance said coolly. Then she briskly walked up the stairs "Cressida, your room is the second door on the right. Kerensa, your's is the first on the left. If you have any other questions come find me." with that she turned and descended the stairs again.

Kerensa walked to her room and disappeared inside, leaving Cressida on her own.

Cressida sighed a little and walked to her door. With a small tingle of excitement she grasped the doorknob.

'This is my room, this is where I live now.' She thought as she turned it and stepped into the room. She took a deep breath and coughed. Her deep blue eyes widened. Her room smelled like pot!

Reviews much appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3: Meeting the Roommates

**Disclaimer! I don't own Night World (I wish I could be that brilliant). It is L.J. Smith's baby.**

The first thought Kerensa had when she stepped into her room was 'oh no.'

This was why. Pink floral wallpaper, a pink bedspread covered with stuffed animals on one side of the room. The closet door was half open, showing a variety of loose flowing dresses. All pastel colors and at least knee length. Kerensa looked to the vanity mirror on top of one of the two dressers. Mirror framed by pink fur and the top was covered with makeup.

Kerensa threw herself down on the other bed, which was yet to be made and had plain white sheets. "Why?" she said aloud "Why is my roommate going to be a frilly little flower child?"

With a heavy sigh she pushed herself up and looked at her bag, discarded just inside the door. She pushed herself up and dragged the bag to the other dresser.

She dumped her clothes, all black and darker shades of color, into the drawer without bothering to organize. It's not that she was a slob. It's just that if she knows basically where everything is she didn't care about taking a few extra seconds to find it.

She pushed the drawers closed and started taking her books out. A few romance novels she was not afraid to admit to having. And then her prized possessions. Books on witchcraft. Most of them were the basics, then there was the older one from the back of the restricted section. Its pages were just beginning to yellow. It had dark spells, ones she had been too apprehensive to try before finishing the others. This book she hid under her pillow. Then she took another look at the bed. Ms. Nance had sad her roommate was a Rasmussen. She hadn't met any vampires yet, but this frilly little display was less than impressive.

She wondered how Cressida was doing. Since they'd left their old house Cressida had been nervous about being by herself. It was understandable, the last few months had been rather...unpredictable. Still, she wished her sister was a little more independant.

Kerensa checked the time. 2:30. Her roommate will probably be home soon. Kerensa grimaced as she looked at the pink floral bed again. Then she walked to the door, might as well give herself a personal tour of the rest of the house.

Slipping out silently, Kerensa crept back to the stairs. She listened for Ms. Nance, trying to remember if she'd been wearing heels or not. She took off her boots and padded down the stairs in her socks before setting them by the front door like she was just worried about tracking mud. Then she walked down the hall like she had nothing to hide. There was the living room, with couches that looked as comfortable as the beds. Then there was that big grandfather clock. That was bound to be loud. Kerensa continued past them and found a plain door in polished mahogony that matched the floor. Opening it, Kerensa found what seemed to be an office, filled with bookshelves and a desk in front of the wide floor-to-ceiling windows. The nameplate sitting on it had Ms. Nance's name, so Kerensa quickly ducked out.

Next was what appeared to be a second living room, which Kerensa found odd. Then she noticed this one was much more teenager-friendly, with well worn in couches and a tv. There was a video game console, not the newest but still good. Next to the tv was a stereo system with tall racks crammed with cd's. And on a desk between two windows and a coat closet was a desk with a computer. This was probably for the girls to spend time so Ms. Nance and the two cleaning ladies could rest in the other living room.

After finding two bathrooms and a door into the spacious backyard Kerensa found what she was really looking for. Or what she guessed it was. A heavy door stood in front of her, wider than the others. There were five heavy-duty locks on it, each one looking more than a little difficult to pick. Kerensa felt her fingers twitch, already wanting to find her little lock pick set and desperately hoping she hadn't left it. 'What are you hiding?' she thought to no one in particular, running her hand up the locks. She glanced up and down the hall before leaning over and pressing her ear to the door. She didn't know what she expected, she just had a feeling she would hear something.

And she did.

It was odd, at first it sounded like the wind, then it almost sounded like sobbing, after that it became the faint crashing of ocean waves. Kerensa's eyes widened a little as she listened to the ever changing noise, unable to grasp what she was hearing and only able to guess and have it change on her. She was so engrossed in this that she nearly leaped out of her skin when a hand tapped her shoulder.

oOo

Cressida had the window open and was rapidly using one of her books to try and fan the stench out. She'd read about contact highs from just smelling second hand weed smoke, she didn't want that. And she definately didn't want Ms. Nance to walk in. She was wondering more and more about her roommate, especially after seeing the grungy black bedspread with evil smiley bunnies on it and the dark forest green wallpaper. There were a few pictures of various people, and Cressida had spent five minutes trying to figure out which was Faline before beginning her frantic fanning. She heard the door open behind her.

"Is that some kind of dance?" came the amused question, in reference to Cressida's flailing. Feeling an embarassed flush creep up her cheeks, Cressida set the book on her bed and turned around.

The girl in front of her was in a couple of the pictures, and certainly resembled a doe. At least as much as a human could. She was tall and had incredibly long legs leading to a slim gymnast's torso clad in skin tight jeans and a moss green sweater. The girl's face was narrow with a coy smile and large tilted dark brown eyes peering at her from behind soft brown hair that curled down to her shoulders. A slim brown eyebrow rose. "Well? Is that a jig?" with a shrug the girl strode over to her bed and gracefully sank down onto it.

Cressida stared for a second before remembering it was rude. She certainly didn't seem like someone who smoked marijuana "Um, I'm Cressida Hale. Are you Faline?"

"Sure am. So you're the new girl. Did you enjoy my leftovers?" Faline said with a small smirk.

Cressida blinked "You mean...the smell?"

Faline laughed "Yeah, I meant to save it until after school, but I had a test and needed to mellow out."

"So...you do that a lot?"

"What? Smoke? Yeah, when I feel like it."

Cressida sat down on her own bed and wondered how Faline was so nonchalant. What she was doing was technically illegal. "But, isn't it bad for you?"

"Marijuana? No, it's a plant, it's all natural. The only danger is that I eat up all the chips and sing loud enough to draw down Sabine's wrath." Faline chuckled "She can be so uptight."

"Well...aren't you worried Ms. Nance will find out? I mean, it is illegal." Cressida said, feeling uncomfortable. She didn't want to seem like she was lecturing Faline but she had so many questions.

Her roommate simply shrugged "Nah, the good thing about her is that she values her darling little charges' privacy. Cleaning our room is one of our only chores and she doesn't come in or let Kora and Josephine in." she grinned "Unless someone gets naughty and sneaks a boy up."

Cressida felt her blush brighten and quickly changed the subject "So, um, Ms. Nance said you're a doe shapeshifter?"

Faline raised an eyebrow again, easily seeing through the subject change "Yep, you can find me prancing about the forest on the weekends. By the way I hope you're not squeamish about nudity, clothes don't change with you and there are a lot of shifters in town." she shuddered "Especially those mangy wolves."

Cressida tilted her head "So wolves tend to cause trouble in this town?"

Faline looked back at Cressida, there was a conspirator's little twinkle in her eye "Oh, just about anyone can find a way to cause trouble."

oOo

Kerensa spun around to face whoever had given her a heart attack. What she saw almost gave her another one.

Standing right behind her was a girl with the blackest eyes she'd ever seen. Most just had dark brown eyes, but her eyes were black. She had deep golden skin and full lips painted deep red. A small stud shone in her left nostril. She crossed her arms, showing long pointed nails. Kerensa noticed her boots were thick leather. Skull smashing boots. The girl's thick black hair was tied back into a bun, accenting her angular features and strong shoulders. "Uh, hi." Kerensa said, noticing that despite the thick soles this intimidating girl had moved soundlessly.

"So, looking for something?" The girl asked.

"The bathroom." Kerensa quipped. That had gotten her out of quite a few sneaky jams in the past.

But not this one "I highly doubt anyone would put locks on the outside of the bathroom."

"So what's your name? You can't be the Rasmussen girl. Your clothes are too cool." Kerensa said as she looked the older girl up and down. She wasn't just kissing up...ok that was part of it. But the girl's all black clothes were pretty cool.

The girl snorted "I see. You must be one of the new girls."

Kerensa remembered Ms. Nance mentioning one girl was with Circle Midnight. This girl seemed fairly dark "And you must be...Sable."

The look she got nearly turned Kerensa to stone. 'More like Medusa...' Kerensa ammended silently.

"Sabine, actually. And you seem to be rather curious."

"Just checking things out. So you're really in Circle Midnight?" Kerensa asked, unable to hide her interest.

Sabine almost smiled "Yes, I am. And I know you're a witch, what are you?"

Kerensa nodded "Lost witch. And I want to be Circle Midnight but there wasn't anyone in my old town who was in Circle Midnight. We just found a few Twilighters."

"We?" Sabine questioned.

"My sister Cressida and I." Kerensa said. "She's a little Twilighter herself."

Sabine snorted "They're everywhere." she smirked "But in this town, so are we. I guess I can show you the fun side of things, kid."

Kerensa grinned, she just might like it here.

oOo

That night at dinner, Cressida noticed something different about Kerensa. While when they'd arrived Kerensa was quiet and almost brooding, her mood had definitely improved.

Cressida picked at her casserole and looked at Kerensa's roommate. Melisende was blonde and bubbly, her bright blue eyes sparkling as she talked about her day.

Cordelia, a small little wisp of a girl with skin the color of creamy coffee and hair in long black braids with beads decorating it, listened curiously. Melisende couldn't be the source of Kerensa's upbeatedness, she wore a frilly pink dress and had a quircky southern twang.

Besides, Kerensa wasn't listening to a word Melisende said. She was listening closely to whatever it was the intimidating girl next to her was saying. Sabine scared her a little. And she wasn't sure if it was a good idea for Kerensa to get too close to her, she seemed like bad news. But as Cressida watched them from the corner of her eye, she felt the stirrings of anxiety in her stomach. Kerensa was watching Sabine with the kind of hero worship only a 15 year old could feel.

oOo

**Tell me what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4: An Exciting First Day

**Disclaimer! I don't own Night World, L.J. Smith does. I just own these characters and this town.**

Melisende hopped up out of bed bright and early on Monday morning "Good morning!" she said happily-then expertly ducked the boot that came flying at her head. She looked at the lump on the other bed the heeled projectile had been fired from. Her roomate Kerensa Hale had been spending the last few days following Sabine around when she got home from school. Today would be her first day of school, and she wasn't getting off to a good start. Melisende smiled in amusement and pranced over to the blanket coccoon "Come on sleepy head, the sun waits for no one!"

Indistinct grumbling was her only response. Melisende rolled her eyes and moved to the closet, divided between Melisende's array of frilly dresses and Kerensa's leather jacket and various darker clothes that would wrinkle in the drawers. Melisende drew out one of her favorites, a pale green dress with a sweetheart neckline. Melisende took one last glance at her lump of roommate and thought she saw the corner of a book peeking out from under her pillow. Oh well, some people enjoyed late night reading. Melisende slipped into her matching green heels and skipped out of the room to get to breakfast on time.

oOo

"Is it overcooked?" Ms. Nance asked when she saw Cressida's hesitation after one bite of sausage.

Cressida blinked and looked up at her. Her long black hair was hanging down her back to help keep her neck warm in the cold. "Oh, no, not at all ma'am." she said quickly "I've just never had sausage this good."

Cordelia, the only other early riser with Melisende and Cressida, smiled a little "Ms. Nance is a very good cook, we're lucky she makes us stick to healthy dinners."

Cressida looked at Cordelia. She looked young, even for fourteen. But she was somehow managing to pass herself off as 16, and many boys had already come by asking for her. Her small elfin build seemed to attract many of the local teenage boys. But there was a maturity in her that made her seem older than 16.

Ms. Nance seemed a tad amused by Cordelia's praise, seeing as how the girl didn't need food as much as the rest of them. She returned to the stove, where more pancakes were being prepared.

"So you're a sophmore right? So am I. What classes do you have?" Cordelia asked as Melisende drowned her pancakes in syrup and butter.

Cressida blinked and took out her class schedule. She handed it to Cordelia, who read it over as she took a bite of eggs.

"We have three classes together, I can show you to them."

"Thanks." Cressida said with a smile.

Cordelia nodded "No problem."

Some clunking down the stairs alerted them to Sabine's approach. The thick soles of her boots tended to clomp like a horse's hooves. Sure enough a sleepy and irritable Sabine swept into the room and sank into a chair, scooping eggs and toast onto her plate. Faline followed soon after and slid into a chair, somehow still looking graceful and tired at the same time.

Kerensa was the last to join them, which didn't surprise Cressida. Lately her twin had been staying up half the night and sleeping half the day. Cressida watched her zombified sister munch on her breakfast as she picked up her own plate and set it in the dishwasher. Then she waited for everyone else to finish eating and picked up the large purse she had her notebooks and pens in.

Kerensa slung her black backpack, eerily similar to Sabine's, over her shoulder "So where's the bus stop?"

Sabine tightened the laces on her boot "The town's too small for a bus system, everyone just walks. Unless you have your own car, which none of us do."

Cressida watched Faline lope out of the house on her long dancer's legs "So we all walk together?" that sounded nice. So far this didn't seem like a very tight knit group.

Sabine snorted "I think not. Later shrimps." she said before clomping out.

Kerensa glanced at Cressida and shrugged before following her out.

Cressida winced at this small show of rejection from her twin. Why hadn't Kerensa wanted to walk with her? She looked at Cordelia and Melisende "Um...can I walk with you?"

Melisende beamed a friendly smile, showing perfectly white teeth and delicately curved fangs "Well of course, sugar. How else were you going to find the school?" she and Cordelia looped their arms through Cressida's before leading her out and down the walkway to the sidewalk.

Cressida took a closer look around the town as they walked. She had already lost sight of Sabine, Kerensa and Faline. The town was so quiet Cressida could almost believe they were the only one's living there. That is until she heard the growling and argueing up ahead.

"Oh my," Melisende said, releasing her arm from Cressida's and looking far ahead "it seems our dear Faline has provoked the wolves again."

Cordelia nodded, picking up speed a little "At least this time it's the younger one."

Swallowing her confusion, Cressida hurried after them. Soon she saw what they were talking about. Faline was standing in the middle of a group of rough looking teenagers, ages varying. Faline was keeping her full attention on all of them, so when a small slim girl with long black hair lunged at her, she swung around and aimed a perfect kick to the girl's stomach. She let out a yelp and stumbled back.

The tall boy in the leather jacket crossed his arms "Cecily, I don't believe I said you could attack yet."

The girl shifted and pushed herself up "Sorry Vidar." she mumbled.

Faline smirked "So you were going to send the little girl in before yourself, Vidar? You're such a courageous leader." she said sarcastically.

Vidar's storm grey eyes blazed "Quiet, meat. You were on our territory again. We told you what would happen if you trespassed." he noticed the three girls and glared.

Cressida hid behind Melisende "Are they a gang?" she asked, hearing talk about territories.

Melisende shook her head, sending her cloud of blonde hair flowing around her shoulders "Not at all, hun. They're just the local delinquents to took over the camp grounds."

"And they should really leave Faline alone." Cordelia said, narrowing her eyes.

Faline smiled "Thanks Delia, but I got this."

Vidar scoffed "Yes, I'm sure you do." he snapped his fingers. The other seven teenagers all lunged at Faline. Faline sidestepped most of them but one young teenage boy with silky white-blonde hair smashed into her hard enough to send her to the ground.

As soon as that happened Cordelia and Melisende moved in, and Cressida could sense the strong telepathic attacks that sent the wolves clutching their heads and staggering away from them. A few with strong minds (or no brains...) weren't affected as much and a full brawl started.

Cressida stood back and watched, stunned. This kind of thing had never happened around her before, and she had no idea what to do. She didn't know any useful spells, and her fighting skills were no good. She picked up a rock and hesitantly threw it, then clasped her hands over her mouth when it hit the young blonde boy in the head and sent him to the ground. Blood welled up in his cornsilk fine hair. She hurried and knelt next to him 'I didn't mean to hit someone in the head!' she thought frantically, shrugging off her jacket and pressing it to her head. She was so wrapped up in making sure she hadn't killed him that she didn't see the outcome of the fight until it got too quiet and she had to look.

The pack had Faline, Melisende and Cordelia pinned with Vidar standing over them, smirking in triumph. "Let's see, no one is around, and no one will notice four more girls missing."

"Four?" Cressida squeaked despite herself. She didn't want to die, not just because she'd stumbled into the wrong place with the wrong people.

Vidar looked at Cressida and grinned "Yes, four, or did you think all was forgiven for your brutal treatment of Silvio?"

Cressida flinched as if struck as Vidar stepped towards her "It was an accident! You should be worried about getting him to the hospital." she said half-hysterically.

As Vidar reached down to grab her he was suddenly slammed to the side. Another boy who'd just arrived had shoved him to the side. He was a bit taller than Vidar, and very lanky, with corn-silk blonde hair and hazel eyes with gold flecks.

Vidar staggered but quickly recovered and glared at the boy "Jason, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Jason scowled "Finding out what happened to my brother."

Cressida froze, this just kept getting worse.

Vidar snorted "Ask the little witch holding his bloody head."

Jason turned a cold glare on Cressida "Get away from him."

Cressida scrambled back while Jason scooped up the limp boy. He glared at all of them before jogging off.

Vidar turned back to Cressida but both spun towards the others when a loud comotion took place. During Jason's breif interruption the others had broken free from the other wolves. With Vidar occupied and Silvio unconcious, they'd managed to send the rest of them packing.

Faline smiled sweetly at Vidar "If you don't mind, we're late for school."

Vidar glared at her as Cordelia walked over to Cressida and gently took her arm, leading her away.

Faline turned and strutted away with Melisende.

Cressida looked between them, looking for any sign that any of them were the least bit shaken "W-we were almost killed!"

"Aw, don't look so pale. Vidar likes to play, he would have just roughed us up and let us go again." Melisende told her.

Cressida blinked "But, they attacked us! They surrounded Faline!"

"They're wolves, that's how they opperate." Faline said with a shrug "Besides, it's just fun to piss them off." she said with a smirk "They only kill if you badly hurt one of their own..." she trailed off and looked at Cressida, who had turned a sickly shade of green.

"I-I threw a rock, and it hit a boy in the head. He was bleeding a lot..."

The other three girls were quiet "We won't let them hurt you Cressida." Cordelia said, the humor suddenly gone.

"His brother looked like he wanted to kill me right there..." Cressida murmered.

"Jason? He's not part of the pack, he was kicked out. He won't work with Vidar." Faline assured her. "Calm down, we're going to school. They won't do anything in the open there."

oOo

Sabine stood behind the bleachers with several other students, all dressed in dark clothing. Kerensa stood among them, listening to the various conversations with close attention. She felt like with every description of a charm, or every reference to a book her brain grew. She wondered how Cressida was doing. She was so shy she'd have trouble getting up the nerve to talk to any Circle Twilight witches if she found them.

The sudden silence from the witches around her drew her from her thoughts. They were all looking towards the entrance to their little hide away, where it looks like a greek god had just joined them. Tall and slim with broad shoulders. Olive skin set off by the ink black hair with just enough wave to look like a cloud and black clothes further increasing the illusion of a shadow. He walked straight to Kerensa and Sabine, and in his wake the conversation returned, everyone knowing their leader was now among them.

He stopped in front of Kerensa and looked down at her with eyes as black as a midnight sky "Well well Sabine, what have you brought us?"

Kerensa felt her heart sing, his voice was like melted honey.

Sabine smirked in amusement, seeing the starstruck look on Kerensa's face "She's new and wants to join our little family. Her name is Kerensa Hale." she looked at Kerensa "This is our own personal mob boss, Declan Cailleach."

Declan smiled down at her "Welcome, Kerensa." he chuckled "We have so much to teach you."

oOo

**I'd love to hear what you think! Feel free to leave questions, comments, and/or criticisms!**


	5. Chapter 5: Something Brewing

**I don't own NightWorld! If you don't recognize it, it's mine.**

When Percival Redfern woke up that morning, the first sound he heard was his father's shouting. Hiding a wince, he pushed himself up out of bed and ran a hand through his disheveled blue-black hair. He pulled on a black t-shirt, some vintage jeans, his boots and his jacket. He didn't bother trying to tell what his father Glenn was yelling, it was usually the same.

Sure enough, when he walked downstairs he saw his half-brother Shark, younger by only a month, sitting at a dining room chair while Glenn and Shark's mother, Ocean, reprimanded him. Being careful not to draw attention to himself, Percival slipped into the kitchen. It was the same scolding. Shark hadn't come home last night, had been drunk when he did come home, and had killed three humans last night. The murders didn't bother Glenn, Percival knew. It was that Shark hadn't cleaned up his mess.

Percival's own mother, Deniz, entered the kitchen herself. She wore a crisp navy pantsuit and had her own blue-black hair pulled back into a severe chignon. Her piercing golden eyes zeroed in on Percival "Good morning." she said dutifully. She shifted her gaze to the maid bringing her briefcase. "I may be late getting home. There are two new students at the school I must attend to." Deniz was the principal of the local high school. Not that Percival knew much about that, he and his many siblings were home schooled.

"Have a good day, mother." Percival said blankly. He watched her walk to the door, noting the differences between him and the rest of his family's cool reserve. While he moved with a liquid grace, they all carried themselves with an air of authority similar to that of a monarch. Except for little Slade, with a five-year-old's clumsiness, and Shark, who slunk around just as silently as his namesake moved through dark waters.

He dimly realized he no longer heard the sound of scolding and turned back to the large rectangular table. Ocean had disappeared into the vast halls of the mansion. Shark sat back, drinking from a coffee mug. He wiped red away from his mouth. Glenn was on the phone, talking in an urgent hushed voice. Finally he snapped it shut and walked briskly from the house without a word to either son.

"He seemed in a hurry." Shark said coolly.

"Probably going to go clean up those three humans, Shark the Ripper." Percival snapped. He didn't mean to sound so harsh, but his brother's carelessness with his victims was just an accident waiting to happen.

Shark raised an eyebrow, unconcerned. "No, he usually lets that imbecile Rudy deal with it. For a wolf he's good at forgeing runaway and suicide notes." he said coolly.

Percival glanced over his brother. It was difficult to believe they were related. The only similarity was their slim builds. Shark's deep red hair was the color of blood and curved over his high cheekbones. And his eyes were as deep blue and fathomless as the ocean. No sign of any emotion, least of all remorse. Percival shrugged "Well he wants his payoff. I don't think his sheriff's salary pays him enough for his liking." he raised an eyebrow "Though if you were to actually avoid killing, his job wouldn't be so ironic."

Shark flashed a cold, sardonic smile "Where's the fun in that?" he finished his blood and left the mug on the table before grabbing his thick leather jacket. Not that he needed the warmth, but he could hide quite a bit in the deep pockets."

Percival felt a disapproving frown form "Where are you going?"

Shark barely glanced at him "Out." he walked to the wide double-doors.

Percival sighed "Hopeless." he followed him. He wouldn't be able to tell Shark what to do. Only hope to keep him from getting into too much trouble.

Why couldn't any of his older sisters deal with him?

oOo

Fighting with wolves was fun. Beating wolves was fun. Getting cornered by them in the morning is not fun. Which was why Faline skipped her third period class to partake in her dirty little habit.

The third floor girl's bathroom of the highschool was a rundown little piece of work. It was where all the stereotypes happened. Slander on the stall walls, comparing boys' sizes, and smoking by the wide window that opened onto the back of the school, where none of the security guards bothered to go. There was a small competition going on. When a cigarette was done, the girl would write her unitials on the filter, then flick it as far away from the school as possible. So far the farrest was from a miss S.D.

Faline had a pretty good guess as to who that was.

There was an unspoken rule. If you were smoking a cigarette, you stayed by the window and left the door unlocked, so girls could still come in and do their business. If you were doing something else, you stuck the broken plastic broom handle through the door handle to keep someone else from coming in. You either went to a different bathroom, or knocked three times moving down the door to join in. And you never, ever, squealed to a teacher when the door was blocked.

Faline waited for the two little freshmen to finish their makeup and leave. It was way too much, those girls were going to get themselves into trouble. Once their immature giggles at one unfortunate boy's size written on the wall faded down the hall, Faline slid the broomstick into the handle and got out her lighter and a little baggie.

She rolled a small joint and lit it up. She needed to keep it calm.

It infuriated her, that's what it did. She'd been dodging the Pack for a week now, and the one day they catch up to her they decide to traumatize little Cressy.

Silvio would be fine, but the damage was done. Meli and Delia had needed to calm her down. She'd been freaking out. Faline felt bad for not helping, but she just wasn't the type to comfort the crying. She was more like the one who told them to suck it up.

Taking a long drag of the joint, Faline glanced out the window. She saw two lamia boys approaching. Both tall and slim, one with black hair and one with red.

"Well hello" she murmered. More new students?

She was interrupted by three knocks on the door, each one further down. Faline hopped down and slid the broom out to let her new buddy in.

Sabine's cool dark eyes bore into her "Hey. Heard you ran into Vidar and his little gang today." she said as she strolled in, clomping in her thick boots.

Faline resealed the door and nodded "Yeah. But Meli and Delia helped out. And Cressida, well, was there. And threw a rock."

Sabine raised an eyebrow "Speaking of the twins, what do you think of them?"

Faline shrugged "Cressida's really the only one I've talked to. Kerensa seems to have superglued herself to you."

Sabine nodded "Kerensa has some potential. Even if she's just half witch, she's strong. And determined." a wry smiled twisted her red lips "She is also the antithesis of Melisende."

Despite the light talk, Faline felt a small frown form "Potential for what?" Sabine wasn't the type to just take someone under her wing.

Sabine's smile turned mysterious "Oh, nothing. Just a little rambling." she took out her own joint and put it between her lips.

oOo

Percival looked around with open curiosity, this is the closest he'd ever been to the school. He'd never been here with his mother. It just made him wonder more what business Shark had here.

"This is as far as you go with me." Shark suddenly said at the gate.

Percival blinked, what was Shark up to "What?"

"You heard me. I have things to do. So shoo. Go talk to a girl you aren't related to for once." with that his brother turned his back to Percival and walked into the school. Feeling a little abandoned, Percival walked towards the courtyard.

oOo

Shark slipped silently under the bleachers of the football field. He'd had to use more caution that normal to avoid being followed by Percival. His cautious older brother should be more worried about himself. Shark had better things to do than be the perfect son like him.

He found Declan waiting for him "Took you long enough." he said tersely.

Shark put on his most charming smile "You're lucky I even bothered to help you with your little plan. Get high and mighty with me and I'll rip your throat out.

Instead of being alarmed, Declan just smiled in amusement. "Anyway, did you get what I asked?"

Shark gave a short nod and pulled the plastic bag filled with ice out "Three chilled hearts from virgin girls. So can you do it?"

"Well this spell will just be a small part of the major plan. Now that I have a way into that house, I need to secure it."

"A way in?"

Declan smirked "Sabine is ok, but she's too suspicious, too obvious. If I start spending too much time with her I'll draw unnecesary attention to myself." the smirk grew colder "There is however, a new set of twins, and one of them is very obviously interested in me. And she's untrained. The more she bonds with me, the less the spell around the house will keep me out. From there Nance just needs to get out of the house for a while. Then we'll have what we need."

oOo

**I would love to hear back from readers! No matter what they say!**


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